New bus routes are being offered for PCC students

A new transportation system is available to Person and Caswell County students attending Piedmont Community College.

Beginning the week of Jan. 21, PCC and the Caswell County Area Transportation System partnered to provide three new bus routes.

The PCC Foundation anticipates that students will be able to carry more flexible class schedules in upcoming semesters thanks to the new transportation system.

With a new method of transportation students will be given the opportunity to take courses that were previously unavailable to them.

“People are already thinking about CATS for the fall semester in order to go ahead and plan for their classes,” said PCC’s Public Information Officer Beth Townsend.

All three bus routes are being provided daily to and from Person and Caswell County at no cost.

The CATS schedule runs in the morning, mid-day and afternoon.

Transportation services depart as early as 8 a.m. with the last bus arriving at the Caswell County Campus at 4:50 p.m.

Bus services not only take students to and from campuses, but to PCC’s Learning Studio, Kirby Cultural Arts Complex, Business Development and Entrepreneurship Center and the Workforce Training Center.

“The hope is that students have had a taste of what they can do now and interest will grow,” said Townsend.

According to Townsend, one of the foundation’s main goals in providing the transportation system was to create a partnership within the two counties.

“It opens the door for more students to take more classes. Now students can jump on a bus and come take classes that they couldn’t take before,” said Townsend.

Townsend said the first week the foundation announced the availability of the CATS system one student used the transportation system.

She believes students haven’t taken full advantage of the CATS system yet because it was announced after the start of the semester and most students already had their transportation plans taken care of.